The Lahore Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) on Tuesday reserved its verdict on the bail petition of Shahrez Khan, son of Aleema Khan and nephew of former prime minister Imran Khan, in the high-profile Jinnah House attack case. During proceedings, the defense argued that Shahrez had been falsely implicated, pointing out that neither geo-fencing nor investigation reports placed him at the crime scene. They emphasized that his name was missing from the challan and was not cited by any investigating officer. Counsel further contended that the arrest was politically motivated, citing Aleema Khan’s activism for Imran Khan’s release. The defense also submitted affidavits claiming Shahrez was in Chitral on May 9, the day of the attack, and was never summoned during the probe.
The prosecution, however, opposed the plea, stressing that the affidavits required verification before they could be considered credible. They told the court that while no material was found on Shahrez’s own social media accounts, images linking him to the incident had been retrieved from his friends’ profiles. Prosecutors urged the ATC to dismiss the bail application, maintaining that his involvement could not be ruled out at this stage. After hearing both sides, the judge asked counsel to conclude arguments quickly due to his scheduled jail visit and subsequently reserved judgment. Shahrez Khan had earlier been nominated as a supplementary accused by Sarwar Road Police in connection with the May 9 attack on Jinnah House.
